School of the Week

October 2006

Congratulations to Lourdes Secondary for becoming the first Fairtrade secondary school in Glasgow. The school successfully applied for the award shortly after Glasgow gained Fairtrade city status.

The school gained the award with flying colours and has continued to do a lot of great work to educate and raise awareness about Fairtrade and other global justice issues. Lourdes Secondary has a long tradition of pioneering Fairtrade issues with its active Justice and Peace Group getting involved in Fairtrade as early as 1994 - long before most people were aware of it.

A special mention goes to the pupils of the Fairtrade steering group who have promoted Fairtrade in an imaginative and creative way. They worked with the Art Department in the school to create the Incredible Human Vending Machine. Pupils from the Fairtrade group sit inside the elaborately decorated cardboard construction at break time, collect the coins as they’re passed through the slots at the top and pass the appropriate Fairtrade goodie out of the flap at the bottom. If only all vending machines were that ethical and user-friendly! Congratulations to all for your ingenuity and long-standing commitment to Fairtrade!